Jeniffer M. De Jesus Roberts

Jeniffer guides new and veteran government contractors through the entire contracting life cycle, counseling on global compliance issues and offering solutions that help achieve business objectives while complying with domestic and international regulatory obligations. After nearly a decade in-house, she understands the business dynamic and helps clients operate effectively while reducing risk.

Regulatory Compliance & Ethics Programs

Drafting and implementing global policies and procedures on a wide range of compliance and ethics topics for small, mid-size, and publicly traded companies doing business with governments in the U.S. and internationally.

Conducting full-scope (as well as targeted) risk assessments and compliance reviews. This includes analyses of how the existing compliance framework would measure against the requirements of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the U.S. Federal Sentencing Guidelines standards of an effective compliance program.

Designing, implementing, and monitoring controls to track compliance with a full spectrum of legal and regulatory requirements, including anticorruption, gifts/entertainment to public officials, the use of third-party intermediaries (such as business development agents, subcontractors, and independent consultants), cost compliance, the FAR Mandatory Disclosure Rule, and various other compliance and reporting obligations.

Implementing monitoring programs to identify, track, and assess new and emerging external legal and regulatory requirements.

Drafting, creating, and implementing records retention policies and schedules that align to the legal and business needs of a company, including U.S. and international legal requirements, specific agency requirements, and general business protocols.

Drafting legal opinions and memoranda on topics related to compliance with U.S. and international public procurement laws.

Corporate Transactions

Counseling clients (legal and business teams) on all legal issues relating to international and U.S. federal, state, and local government contracting opportunities and administration, including significant experience with cost compliance, commercial item contracting, and GSA schedule contracting.

Drafting and negotiating agreements with and between commercial entities, including teaming agreements, professional services agreements, subcontracts, joint venture agreements, and licensing agreements.

Advising on complex, high-profile contracts for major government contractors and negotiating and drafting complex clauses such as most-favored customer, data rights clauses, licensing, special security clauses, and conflict of interest mitigation plans.

Negotiating agreements with government customers in both the pre-award contract negotiation and post-award contract administration contexts.

Conducting M&A due diligence and leading post-merger integration efforts for commercial companies and government contractors on both the buyer side and seller side.

Investigations, Litigation & Risk Mitigation Strategies

Conducting internal investigations on a variety of topics, including those related to employment/HR matters, anticorruption, procurement integrity/competition concerns, fraud and abuse allegations, potential significant overpayments, contract compliance, and other ethics- and compliance-related topics.

Identifying key risk areas and developing business-minded, workable solutions to mitigate risks and allow the company to focus on business growth, including identifying risks and working with business teams to implement risk mitigation strategies associated with the rollout of new products and service offerings, particularly information technology and cyber products and services.

Small Business Programs

Working with small businesses who are seeking mentors and SBA certifications, and generally navigating the small business regulations (including affiliation rules and compliance with size standards).

Drafting, negotiating, and reviewing teaming, subcontract, and joint venture agreements for small businesses.

Jeniffer Roberts helps C-suite and other top executives at Fortune 500 biotechnology, health care, global management consulting, technology, and outsourcing companies with matters involving ethics and compliance, litigation, investigations, M&A, and corporate and business transactions issues. From conducting M&A due diligence and post-merger integration efforts to advising on government contracting opportunities and administration to reviewing, designing, and enhancing global compliance and ethics programs to leading internal investigations and government investigations defense, Jeniffer offers end-to-end services that allow new and established government contractors to operate effectively within the myriad domestic and international regulatory restrictions.

Her near-decade of experience as a senior in-house counsel for two large public companies gives her an informed perspective when advising clients. Business leaders benefit from her keen ability to obtain consensus and to identify, manage, and reduce risk on a variety of critical compliance issues involving procurement fraud, suspension and debarment regimes, conflicts of interest, revolving door, data protection and privacy, domestic preference programs, the McNamara–O’Hara Service Contract Act (SCA), cost compliance and mandatory disclosure, anticorruption, export controls, foreign ownership, control, or interest (FOCI), and other government reporting obligations.

Jeniffer is very active in her community and serves as pro bono general counsel to FAIR Girls, a nonprofit organization focused on preventing the exploitation of girls worldwide through empowerment and education.

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Languages

Spanish

Bar Admissions

Virginia

District of Columbia

Education

The George Washington University (J.D., 2002)

The George Washington University (M.P.H., 2002)

West Chester University of Pennsylvania (B.A., 1999)

Memberships

Akilah Foundation, board member

FAIR Girls, pro-bono general counsel

HealthCare Information Security & Privacy Practitioner (HCISPP)

Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD), 2017 LCLD Fellows Program